Students from Union Middle and High School recently returned from the Mississippi State BETA Convention with awards, memorable experiences, and plenty of school spirit. For those unfamiliar, BETA is a national honor society that celebrates academic achievement, leadership, service, and character.
“It’s a club where you get to show off your skills in front of a bunch of people,” explained Colt Fulton, a 7th grader. “We work on things with our team and compete against other schools across the state.”
Fulton made a big impression this year by being elected as the Mississippi Junior Beta President and Annley Howell, an 11th grader ran for Senior Beta Secretary and helped lead a campaign skit. “We had to give a speech under two minutes, do a one-minute skit, and answer a surprise question in front of over a thousand people,” said Howell. “It was nerve-wracking, but a really cool experience.”
The campaign skit teams for both Fulton at Junior Convention and Howell at Senior Beta Convention took home the 2nd and 1st Place honors. In another competition, senior Vaiden Bouder earned fourth place in cake decorating, a brand-new category this year. “One of my friends did cake decorating and placed really high,” shared eighth grader Jagger Stephens. “That was pretty exciting to watch.”
Union was also proud to have several high school students selected to perform at Nationals in the Opening Session. Those students include Cory Smith, Makenlee Yeager, Rylee Pullin, Julia Harrison, and Aiden Robertson. Sixth, seventh and eighth graders all represented the school in various events. Sixth grader Jack Fultz and student Sadler Tillman joined in too, getting a taste of the BETA experience early on. “It’s cool being around older students who are doing these big things,” said Fultz. “It makes you want to step up.”
High school senior Cecelia Burroughs took part in the group talent act themed around The Greatest Showman. “We had some dressed as a lion, a strongman, albino twins, and I was an acrobat,” Burroughs said. “It was funny and kind of chaotic—but really fun.”
Eighth grader Luke Rush, the current Mississippi Junior Beta President, presided over the convention and delivered a keynote address. His keynote address featured one of his favorite hobbies—disc golf. Rush said, “I got to introduce sessions and bring things to order, and in the speech, It helped that I was talking about something I enjoy.”
Back at home, Union’s BETA Club keeps just as busy. This year’s service projects included providing Christmas gifts for nursing home residents, collecting canned goods and winter coats for the Union Police Department, organizing activities for Union Day, and hosting a Valentine’s Day fundraiser with handmade goody bags. “We had bouncy houses, ran booths, and just helped bring the community together,” said Howell.
As Fulton prepares to represent Mississippi at Nationals, he’s ready for the challenge. “I’ve never been before, but I’m excited,” he said. “It’ll be a lot more people than at state, but I’m ready.”
From skits and speeches to service and leadership, Union’s BETA students showed what it means to lead with heart and represent their school with pride. With Nationals on the horizon, their story is just getting started.
